Voter turnout in Los Angeles County reaches more than 50%

LOS ANGELES - About 51.6 percent of registered Los Angeles County voters had cast ballots in today's election as of 5 p.m., according to the Registrar's Office.

That was off pace with both 2004 and 2008, when 57.8 percent and 65.3 percent of voters had voted by 5 p.m., respectively.

However, about 32 percent of all registered voters requested mail-in ballots, and only 46 percent of the 1.5 million county-issued vote-by-mail ballots had been returned as of Monday, according to the Registrar's Office.

About 8.7 percent more Los Angeles County voters were registered to vote in this year's election than in 2008 -- 4,674,338 this year compared to 4,298,440 in 2008.

In Hancock Park, some residents complained about not being notified about a polling place being moved, from a spot near Third Street and Wilton Place to the Wilshire United Methodist Church a few blocks away at 4350 Wilshire Blvd.

A spokeswoman for the Registrar's Office said election workers notified voters in that precinct by postcard and "robo calls."